Lavrov: NATO Enlargement a Relapse into Cold War

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov reiterated on July 5 Moscow’s reservations towards any further NATO enlargement.

“We do not see any need for NATO enlargement and we see this process as a step back towards the Cold War. NATO enlargement seems to be an artificial [process]; there should not be any dividing lines in Europe,” RIA Novosti news agency quoted Lavrov as saying at a joint news conference with his Finnish counterpart, Ilkka Kanerva, in Moscow.

Meanwhile in Georgia, President Saakashvili said in an interview with Reuters on July 4, that he expected Georgia would receive a NATO Membership Action Plan (MAP) “in the months to come.”

“And then, it [NATO-membership] will become inevitable,” he added.

This post is also available in: ქართული (Georgian) Русский (Russian)